Need advice on which router to get

[aces99]

Hi, I need alittle advice and help on which router to get. I am in the need of a new wireless router as the one I have now is pretty old and slow. When I try streaming HD over the Internet it is very slow and choppy. I am looking for a pretty good one that will handle HD streaming like Netflix. I am also going to be setting it up and using it with a VPN service, privateinternetaccess.com From my research and what I have it sounds like the Asus AC68U and Asus AC87U are probably the best routers. The 87U is the new quad stream router and is supposed to be the best router on the market. The first question I have is should I get the AC68U or is it worth paying the difference and getting the AC87U. Or is there a better router to get.

The other question I have is once I get the new router and VPN service set up and running do I still need a anti virus and firewall program or will I need not need them anymore because of the router and VPN service. By the sounds of it the AC87U has security built into it already. I don't want to pay for a antivirus and firewall program if the routers have it built into them.don't want to pay for a antivirus and firewall program if the routers have it built into them.

The last question I got is if I should go with the AC87U router what is the best quad stream client adapter to get for it. This is going to be a costly adventure so I want to make sure I get the right one. Thanks for any advice and help you can provide.

 

[stevech]

Before blaming the WiFi router: What downstream and upstream speeds does your internet service provider promise? Deliver? Measured with a good computer using wired, not WiFi.
What router do you have now? 802.11n?

Netflix isn't HD - so a decent 802.11n router with a good/excellent signal strength should do fine. Better, use MoCA or HomePlug/HPNA instead of WiFi - as wireless is always the last resort when lots of speed and reliability are needed. Esp. in urban areas.

 

[aces99]

Hi, I am not sure what exact model it is because it is so old you can't read the writing on it. But it was a $39 D-Link special that I bought about 7-8 years ago. My internet plan, although not guaranteed, is 25mbps download and 2.7mbps upload. I have tested it many times and I am getting almost the exact same. I have only tested it wirelessly as it is to far away to have it wired. I have Netflix and I can tell you that it is HD. Actually they offer ultra HD now. Here is a couple links for you.

https://www.netflix.com/ChangePlan

https://help.netflix.com/en/node/13444

https://help.netflix.com/article/en/node/13844?ba=GSButtonClick&q=Can I stream Netflix in HD

 

[Ronv42]

Hi, I am not sure what exact modle it is because it is so old you can't read the writing on it. But it was a $39 D-Link special that I bought about 7-8 years ago. My internet plan, although not guaranteed, is 25mbps download and 2.7mbps upload. I have tested it many times and I am getting almost the exact same. I have only tested it wirelessly as it is to far away to have it wired. I have Netflix and I can tell you that it is HD. Actually the offer ultra HD now. Here is a coupl links for you. ]

I bet it was the DI-514:

http://support.dlink.com/emulators/di514_revc/h_wizard.html

I had a army of them deployed before I got into the rom burnable routers Linksys WRT-54G and then buffalo G routers with Tomato firmware. The issue with G is that even though they only had an effective throughput of about 22 mbps. Most home broadband connections are faster than that but it should be able to handle a Netflix stream at HD as long as nobody else is using the wireless.

Almost any of the modern routers from the Asus N16 and up would do you just fine since you downstream from your provider is about 25 mbps. They have plenty of CPU to handle that bandwidth. And as far as wireless most of the current crop of Roku's and smart TV have at least N networking built in at the 2.4 Ghz frequency.

If you don't have the budget then the WireCutter had a good review in inexpensive routers that performed great:

http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-cheap-router/

 

[Igb]

If you plan the router to handle VPN, I suggest you get a router with a decent SoC, it is one of the few tasks that require real "horsepower".


About the ac68u vs ac87u, i suggest the first. I tested both, and the latter, using 3x3 clients, is in fact a bit slower than its predecesor. In 4x4 seems not significantly better either according to SMB review. Maybe this fact changes with newer drivers, but that is the actual state.

Apart from that, be sure that the problems you experience are not being caused by the vpn or insufficient bandwidth. Note that you need ac clients to make use of all the speed the router can give. If you use old 802.11b/g clients the router swap will make no difference.

Regards

 

[aces99]

Hi Ron 42, I think you might be right. The D1 does sound Samiliar.

Hi Igb, thanks for the advice. I was kinda leaning towards the AC68U myself since there are no quad stream client adapters for it to take advantage of the extra speeds. Plus there are no devices that can take advantage of it either. I am going to get the Asus PCE-AC68 adapter as well.

 

[CaptainSTX]

To run a VPN on your router you will need a powerful router. Even then don't be surprised with a 30% - 40% reduction in download speeds.

Even with a VPN you still need to run virus protection on your connected devices. The VPN only encrypts the message from your router to the VPN providers's server. A VPN can protect you from certain things such as man in the middle attacks but viruses are not one of the things they protect against.

As for your problem with streaming a new router with N may help, but WiFi can be problematic especially if you must use the 2.4 Ghz band. WiFi for streaming video should be your last choice after evaluating MOCA and Ethernet over powerline.

 

[aces99]

Thanks very much for the information CaptainSTX. I have been doing some research MOCA and Ethernet over powerlines and am thinking about going that route. Withe Ethernet over powerline plugs you still need to a router to go with it. Thanks for letting me know about still needing antivirus software. You helped me a lot. Much appreciated.

 

[azazel1024]

I would say it depends on the streaming situation. I am maybe (probably) lucky with my wifi environments, but even when I was in a townhouse with probably a dozen visible networks and several even stronger than my own (depending on where I was in the house), using a venerable Netgear WNDR3500L, I had no issues streaming netflix to things like iPad2s, iPhone 4s, laptop, etc. I can't say I ever tested with more than a couple of streams going.

I will also say, that in the one or two really bad spots in my house (like master bedroom in bed), congestion/range made it such that the throughput was lousy. I could NOT handle a high bit rate local (on my server) 720p stream (about 8Mbps) without buffering every couple of minutes. Netflix still worked okay, though it was likely not streaming at max quality.

A better router, along with being able to utilize 5GHz would have helped a lot. Or better placement of the router (or a 2nd AP) would have solved the issues most deffinitely.

In my current house streaming isn't an issue, though with the one router and two APs (one is outdoors only though) with the channel selection, I've got about 1100Mbps of utilizable bandwidth (depending on where you stand in the house in relation to the router and AP, that isn't theoretical, that is tested actual max between the two bands and router and AP)....so streaming isn't something I really think about, 2.4 or 5GHz anymore. A far cry from when I had only a single band, a single router and maybe 6Mbps at best in my "nearly dead zone". I think my worst location might have around 300Mbps of bandwidth between the two bands (not counting what is further away there, the router or the access point. Throw the far basestation in and it might be more like 400Mbps if you were to connect to it as well the closer basestation).

 

[sfx2000]

Hi, I need alittle advice and help on which router to get. I am in the need of a new wireless router as the one I have now is pretty old and slow. When I try streaming HD over the Internet it is very slow and choppy. I am looking for a pretty good one that will handle HD streaming like Netflix. I am also going to be setting it up and using it with a VPN service, privateinternetaccess.com From my research and what I have it sounds like the Asus AC68U and Asus AC87U are probably the best routers. The 87U is the new quad stream router and is supposed to be the best router on the market. The first question I have is should I get the AC68U or is it worth paying the difference and getting the AC87U. Or is there a better router to get.

The other question I have is once I get the new router and VPN service set up and running do I still need a anti virus and firewall program or will I need not need them anymore because of the router and VPN service. By the sounds of it the AC87U has security built into it already. I don't want to pay for a antivirus and firewall program if the routers have it built into them.don't want to pay for a antivirus and firewall program if the routers have it built into them.

The last question I got is if I should go with the AC87U router what is the best quad stream client adapter to get for it. This is going to be a costly adventure so I want to make sure I get the right one. Thanks for any advice and help you can provide.

I would go with the AC68U perhaps, or even the AC66U - the AC87U has some issues

Other thoughts:

Don't run VPN on a router that isn't specifically designed for it - OpenVPN is a marketing checkbox, but the performance here has issues - and it's a design issue with OpenVPN (it's an app, and not inside the IP stack unlike OpenSWAN). The overhead of running OpenVPN on a SOHO router will impact all users of that router, and this is significant if someone is gaming while someone is using the OpenVPN link to watch video.

If you need VPN, whether it is OpenVPN or other, use a service provider rather than trying to host it on your own - you'll be much happier for it.

sfx

 

[BDSuser]

Router question also

I realize this is a question of choice or relevance to most, but I have 2 macs running AC, the new iPhone running AC, and then around 15 more devices throughout the house pushing N or mixed modes. I have 500mbs download and upload speeds served to the house. I use the WRT1900ac and I am happy with it obtaining about 440 download speeds wirelessly to my mac. But here is my issue, whenever something feels like it's "hanging", and I know it could be on the web address's server side, I wonder if the WRT1900 is glitching. I would imagine it isn't, and so going with the adage, "if it isn't broke, don't fix it", I will say again that I am pleased with the device. The problem is we all want the BEST. Can anyone tell me if I am missing BIG THINGS with the 87R with merlin's firmware? Maybe be even happier with my wifi coverage? One thing I really dislike about the WRT1900 is that it doesn't support time machine backups and I do keep a usb drive connected to the router for this purpose. It would be much easier with the 87R using time machine to do backups. Anyhow, just don't want to waste my time to go swap the Linksys 1900 for the Asus 87R if for example, the "N" speeds are less than the Linksys because on any given day I can have 30 clients connected to this router, and of course mostly N or even 2.4ghz clients. THANKS in advance.

 

[sfx2000]

I realize this is a question of choice or relevance to most, but I have 2 macs running AC, the new iPhone running AC, and then around 15 more devices throughout the house pushing N or mixed modes. I have 500mbs download and upload speeds served to the house. I use the WRT1900ac and I am happy with it obtaining about 440 download speeds wirelessly to my mac. But here is my issue, whenever something feels like it's "hanging", and I know it could be on the web address's server side, I wonder if the WRT1900 is glitching. I would imagine it isn't, and so going with the adage, "if it isn't broke, don't fix it", I will say again that I am pleased with the device. The problem is we all want the BEST. Can anyone tell me if I am missing BIG THINGS with the 87R with merlin's firmware? Maybe be even happier with my wifi coverage? One thing I really dislike about the WRT1900 is that it doesn't support time machine backups and I do keep a usb drive connected to the router for this purpose. It would be much easier with the 87R using time machine to do backups. Anyhow, just don't want to waste my time to go swap the Linksys 1900 for the Asus 87R if for example, the "N" speeds are less than the Linksys because on any given day I can have 30 clients connected to this router, and of course mostly N or even 2.4ghz clients. THANKS in advance.

I think you've answered your own question

Recommendations if you want 11ac

1) Airport Exteme 11ac - stable/fast supports your Macs and Iphones without a doubt - and a great reference platform for non-Apple platforms

2) WRT1900ac - finally stable - less tweaking than Asus, but very fast and stable - less tweaking, but once sorted, set and forget, it just works

3) Asus RT-AC66U - probably the best/most mature right now, the AC68U is gaining ground - I would shy away from the AC87U at the moment due to stability and performance issues in 5GHz.

Can't really speak for Netgear or D-Link solutions at the moment.

 

[RogerSC]

The Netgear R7000 is working well now for a lot of people. There's a choice of firmware, the Netgear stock firmware is doing well as of the last few releases, and dd-wrt has been working well for several months now and offers a lot more options than the stock firmware.

So you should really throw that one into the mix as well. The R7000 is the overall top-rated wireless-1900ac router here at smallnetbuilder, also. If you haven't looked at the reviews, the router charts, and the router ranker here at this site, you're missing out on a lot.

One thing, make sure that whatever you buy that you buy it at a store where you can return it for a refund if it doesn't meet your needs. This is a biggie...chances are that you won't need to do that, but if you do, and you can't, well, that's really a problem *smile*.

 

[BDSuser]

I agree with your suggestions completely. It goes hand in hand with the research I've done but I just keep seeing the AC87 coming up with high ratings and just wanted to make sure I was on the right path. Will say I tried the AC87 and it must have had glitched firmware because my link rate to my Macbook was only 54mbps. For the life of me I couldn't see an error in my settings so after a day of tampering I ran back out and grabbed the AC1900 from Linksys. Bam, right back to 1ghz connection link on the Mac. I now believe that the AC87 bugginess was simply a firmware issue (as you mentioned) and I guess that is what was drawing me to make the post because I often wonder "what if" the firmware was correct that day I tried it out. Thanks for the responses, will take a peak at the R7000 because the price has lowered. I'm at least going to hold tight to the Linksys until the AC87 is "more mature" as you mentioned it is on the older ASUS models because I am a fan of their products.

 

[aces99]

Thanks very much for the information and advice sfx2000. I already have a VPN service and will not be hosting it myself. I went with the AC68 because it is more stable and wiill be able to support multiple devices and HD Streaming and whatnot. Would you recommend running the VPN service directly on the router or running it from the computer?

 

[CaptainSTX]

If you run the VPN on any router it will slow your speeds down. Most if not all SOHO routers don't have the processor power or RAM to handle the encryption quickly on the fly. Running on a router will probably trim your speeds by at least 30% and maybe 50% depending on other variables. Running the VPN on a reasonably powerful PC and connecting to a server within 300 miles will probably not cost you more than 5%.

Also if you run the VPN on your router all connected devices will run using the VPN unless:

1. You are willing do cut and paste the scripts and Iptables others on this site have developed.

2. You are willing to use Astrill as your VPN provider and add their application to an ASUS router running Merlin's firmware.

3. You purchase a router running Sabai's modified Tomato firmware which includes the option of specifying by device whether to route using VPN or local. They also sell a VPN accelerator that works in conjunction with one of their routers that will probably get you 95% of your speed.

 

[aces99]

Thanks CaptainSTX, I will look into all the different options and decide which route would be the best. Thanks everyone for all the input and information. Much appreciated.